Hairpin



C. M. HARRINGTON.

HMRPIN.

APPLlCATlON men 050.10. 1919.

1,367,874. Pammai "Feb. s, 1921.

Zak fizzy.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CLYDE M. HARRINGTON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO SAMUEL LOWITZ, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

HAIRPIN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 8, 1921.

Application filed December 10, 1919. Serial No. 343,874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLYDE M. HARRING- TON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, Cook county, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hairpins, of which the following is declared to be a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to hair pins, and its principal object is to provide inherent means in the hair pin to automatically lock the same in the hair when in use, whereby any danger of the hair pin becoming accidentally loosened, and falling out is entirely avoided. Many attempts have been made to overcome this difiiculty, with more or less success. lVith the use of the present invention, self locking hair pins may be constructed without adding any appreciable amount to the cost of manufacture. They are highly efiicient, and are handled or used in the familiar manner.

Vith these and other objects and advantages in view, this invention consists in the several novel features hereinafter fully described and claimed.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the drawing accompanying this specification, in which Figure l is a side elevation of a hair pin embodying a simple form of the present invention; Fig. 2 is an edge view thereof looking in the direction of the arrow 2 in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a detail cross section taken on line 33 of Fig. l, and Fig. 4 is a detail cross section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Referring to said drawing, which illustrates a simple embodiment of the present invention, the reference characters 3, 4, designate the two legs of the hair pin, which extend from a U bend 5, as is usual in hair pins, and preferably, although not necessarily so, said legs diverge slightly toward their free ends; said legs are preferably straight throughout the greater portion of their length, but adjacent the bent end they are crimped as will be hereinafter set forth, to provide the locking means therefor, and it is the peculiar formation of this crimped portion of the legs that provides the highly eflicient locking means for the pin.

Generally speaking both legs 3, 4, are bent to form opposite zig zag portions near the U bend (see Fig. 1) and the opposite members of the zig zag portions are also bent in opposite directions from the plane of the pin to give them a sort of zig zag shape (see Fig. 2), the zig zag lines of one leg opposing the zig zag lines of the other and forming wedge like structures that define wedge like openings when viewed as seen in Fig.2.

Referring now to Fig. 1, the portions 6, 6 of the legs are straight; at 7, the leg 3 is bent forward and at 7 the leg 4 bent backward to provide short bent portions 8, 8 both of which, however, are carried toward the median line between the legs, so that they lie in two parallel planes extending in a di rection oblique to the general plane of the pin (see Fig. 3). The short bent portions 8, 8 are bent at 9 9 to form portions 10, 10 the portion 10 of the leg 3 being bent backward and the portion 10 of the leg 4 being bent forward, and both being bent outward from the median line to form diverging portions when viewed as seen in Fig. 1. The bent portions 10, 10 are somewhat longer than the bent portions 8, 8, and extend at a less oblique angle than said portions 8, 8 and at the places where they intersect, the plane of the pin (see Fig. 2) the part 10 is bent back and the part 10 is bent forward at 1.1, 11, to form abrupt portions 12, 12 both being bent toward the median line between the legs and both lying in parallel planes (see Fig. 4). The portions 12, 12 are comparatively short and extend about as far to one side of the plane of the pin as the portions 8, 8 extend on the other side thereof.

At 13, the portion 12 is bent forward and at 13 the portion 12* bent backward as at 14, 14Pboth being bent outwardly so as to diverge from each other, and both merging into the straight portions of the legs 3, 4 as at 15, 15

By reference to Fig. 2 it will be seen that the portions 6, 6, of the legs are straight; that the portions 8, 8 are bent oppositely, and abruptly away from the plane of the pin, and bent back to the plane of the pin at 10, 10 to leave therebetween, an opening 16, (when the pin is viewed toward its edge; that the portions 10, 10 intersect the plane of the pin at 11 and thereat are bent in opposite directions as at 12, 12 and then bent back to the plane of the pin as at 14, 14 where they merge into the straight portions at 15, 15 leaving an opening 17 between It will also be noted that the portions 10,

, and 14, 14, when viewed as seen in Fig. 2, converge toward each other from top to bottom, thereby producing the wedge shaped openings 16, 17, having wedge shaped sides. 'lhe result is that when the hairpin is thrust among the strands of hair, bunches of the V strands are caught above the abrupt portions 8, 8, and in openings 16, 17, between the converging portions,l0, 10 and 14, 1 1, oi the legs and become wedged against saidlegs thereby preventing the hairpin from being withdrawn except upon the application or sufficientforce to bend the strands of hair back' far enough for the protruding bent ends to pass, or the hair nust be bent far enough to pass out through the gaps between the corners 9, 9?, and 13 of the and are effectively held in the openings 15, V

oblique portions.

The hair pin is inserted among the hair as is customary muse. Some of the strands of hair lie on one side of one leg and some on the'other side of the other'leg, and as the crimped end of'the hair pin is pushed into the hair, thestrands of hair enter the spaces between the oblique portions 14, 14 and 10,10, and above the port1ons 8, 8

17 by the oblique crimped portions.

' The'hair extends across the abrupt portions, 8, 8, and 12, 12, which'resistany sli ht effort to withdraw the pin fromthe 'ha1r, but when the pin is rotated'or turned slightly bark and forth, and the gaps between the corners 9, 9 and 13,13 brought across the strands of hair, the pin can be easily withdrawn. It will be noted that the hair holds'the long straight portions of the pin from turning about the axis of the pin except when force is applied to theother end. On account of the comparatively long sloping portions 14, 14- and 10, 10, the pin may be easily and readily inserted in the hair, andon account of the abrupt portions 12, 12 and8, 8 considerable force or other manipulation of the pin must be had to retract it from'the hair. 7

;One important-difference between a hair pin containing the present invention, and those heretofore used is that friction is not depended on to same the pin inplace, but it is locked in thehair by the abrupt shoulders crossing the hair held by the pin. Moreover, the hair need not be crowded in between the two members of the pin as is customary with hair pins having zig zag bends to obtain the locking effect, and thus the usual uncomfortable feeling resulting from the use of such hair pins is eliminated.

More or less variation of'the exact details of construction is possible without departing from the spirit of this invention; 1 desire, therefore, not to limit myself to the exact form of the construction shown and described, but intend, in the following claims, to point out all of the invention disclosed herein. j

I claim as new, and desire'to secure'my Letters Patent: l

1. A hair pin comprising two members, united at one end and free at the other, said membershaving oppositely crimped zigzag portions bent in reverse directions from the main plane of the pin to lie in planes, oblique thereto. e V

2. A hair pin comprising two members united at one end and free at the other, said members having oppositely crimped zigzag portions, each consisting of an 'abruptiy bent short part anda more inclined long part, the opposing portions being bent in reverse directions from the main plane of the pin to lie in planes, oblique thereto.

3. it hair pin comprising two members, united at one end and free at the other,'said members having oppositely .crimped zigzag portions, each zigzag bend consisting of an abruptlybent short part anda morejinclined long part, the opposing portionsbe ing bent in reverse directions from the main 7 plane of the pin to lie inplanes, oblique main plane of the pin. 7

CLYDE M. HARRINGTON 9O thereto, and the zigzag bends on each memher running in reverse d rections from the 

